Cook du Jour Candy Gooding loves cooking from scratch

A twist on tradition

Cook du Jour Candy Gooding shows her Wicked Spanish Rice dish. "I cook from scratch for my family because that's the way mom cooked," she said.

Ventura County Star

Name: Candy Gooding

City: Ventura

Specialty: Home-cooked meals

Secret: Revising recipes

Hostess with the mostest: Much of what makes Candy Gooding what she is can be attributed to her mother. It was her mother who did everything she could for the family — the one who cooked from scratch so her kids didn't have to rely on fast food. Gooding does that, too. "We were healthy kids," Gooding said. "She was a good mom." Motherhood has transformed Gooding into a health-food maven, much like her mother, who was a bona fide trailblazer during her day, preparing exotic dishes long before that became fashionable. She found Chinese cooking with its variety of vegetables and Mexican dishes with their interesting blend of spices particularly intriguing. When the spices weren't available at the regular store, her mother would adjust recipes. "Our relatives didn't even know where to get tortillas," Gooding said.

Labor of love: Always looking to place a new spin on tradition, Gooding's mom created quite a stir after announcing her plans for a Mexican feast on Christmas. It took two days, but it was a true labor of love. "Mom loves to cook," she said. "That's where I got my love of cooking. I cook from scratch for my family because that's the way mom cooked." Her mother's holiday table, adorned with tamales, beans, wicked rice, homemade tortillas and fresh salsa, received nothing but raves. "Everyone loved it because it was great and different," she said. In fact, her family is so enamored with her mother's wicked rice that it's always on the top of their wish list. "When we visit we always ask for wicked rice," she said. "She loves to cook anything for anybody."

'Wow' factor: Now Gooding adds another interesting twist to her culinary collection. Her family is vegetarian, so nearly every recipe has required a revision. Not missing a beat, Gooding uses tofu as a replacement for meat or chicken. "Same recipes, but now with tofu," she said. Her husband, Paul, and daughter, Molly, are devoted fans of Mexican food, so Gooding has turned with up with some interesting variations. Tofu taco stuffing offers a delicious alternative to ground beef — crumbled tofu is sauteed with cumin, chili powder and chopped onions. "It's got the 'wow' factor," she said. "Even non-vegetarians go, 'Wow!'"

Wicked Spanish rice

Ingredients

1 cup raw brown rice

2 tablespoons oil

1 medium-size whole red onion, chopped

Directions

1. Sautee rice and onions in oil. Once rice gets brown, put in 1 cup of homemade salsa and 1½ cups water and cover and simmer for 1 hour.

2. After 45 minutes, check to see if you need to add another ½ cup of hot water.

Salsa Recipe

Ingredients

8 medium tomatoes (romas)

2 bunches cilantro

2 jalapeños

4 or 5 cloves garlic

1 whole onion

½ teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Place all in a food processor and chop to a chunky consistency.

To nominate an amateur cook from Ventura County to be Cook du Jour, email Mike Blackwell at mblackwell@vcstar.com.